Vending machine



Feb. 22, 1944. H. WORSHAM I 2,342,505

VENDING MACHINE Fil ed Feb. 11, 1941 1 "s. Sheets-Sheet 1 y) K t V Inventor Z LIA/00D h. W /PJ/MM Q I pwm A florney Feb'. 22, 1944.

VENDING MACHINE Filed Feb. 11, 1941 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 I J O 3 7 7?; 22 A /i6 22 24 J j 2! I Inventor 4 W000 Ways MM By 9mm Attorney Feb. 22, 1944. WQRSHAM 2,342,505

VENDING MACHINE Filed Feb. 11, 1941 s Sheets-Sheet s Attorney 1n benior Patented Feb. 22, 1944 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE VENDING MACHINE Elwood H. Worsham, Washington, D. C. Application February 11, 1941, Serial No. 378 440 3 Claims. (01. 194-438) My invention relates to improvements in coincontrolled vending machines for pencils and the like.

The invention is designed with the particular purpose in view of providing a simply constructed, inexpensive, readily portable machine equipped for differential operation under control of a single coin to vend different grades of pencils for one price either singly or successively, according to the grade desired.

Other and subordinate objects are also comprehended by my invention, all of which, together with the precise nature of my improvements, will be readily understood when the succeeding description and claims are read with reference to the drawings accompanying and forming part of this specification.

In said drawings-- Figure 1 is a view in front elevation of the preferred embodiment of my improved vending machine,

Figure 2 is a view in side elevation,

Figure 3 is a view in vertical section taken on the line 33 of Figure 1 and drawn to an en.- larged scale,

Figure 4 is a view in horizontal section taken on the line 4-4 of Figure 1,

Figure 5 is a fragmentary detail view in vertical section taken on the line 5-5 of Figure 2 and drawn to an enlarged scale,

Figure 6 is a detail view in vertical section taken on the line .6-6 of Figure 5,

Figure '7 is a fragmentary view in longitudinal section taken on the line of Figure 4,

Figure 8 is a view in end elevation of one of the ejector reels,

Figure 9 is a view in clutch disks, and

Figure 10 is a similar view of another of said disks.

Referring now to the drawings by numerals, the machine of my invention comprises a rectangular, open top, open front casing l, of any suitable material, adapted to be stood on end and including a bottom 2, sides 3, and a back 4. The top of the casing is adapted to be closed by a lid 5 hinged, as at 6, to said back 4. The usual padlock 1, hasp 8 and staple 9 provide for locking the lid 4 down at the front of the casing. Adjacent its bottom, the back 4 of the casing I elevation of one-of the has formed therein a doorway ill for a purpose presently seen. A door ll, hinged, as at l2, to said back 4 and provided with a suitable lock I3 provides for closing said doorway.

A pair of front and rear, gravity feed, pencil storage bins, IS, IS, respectively, are provided in the top portion of the casing l to be closed at their tops by the lid 5. The bins l5, 16, comprise hopper bottoms l1, l8, respectively, from which depend front and rear pencil delivery chutes I9, 20, respectively, the former terminating above the latter and each formed with a bottom delivery trough 2| accessible from the front of the casing l. The bins l5, l6, bottoms", l8, chutes I9, 20, and troughs 2i are constructed to hold the pencils 22, horizontally crosswise of the casing l and are formed with common side walls 23 in the casing lspaced from the sides 3 of the casing for a purpose presently seen.

A pair of follower plates 24, 25, are provided in the front and rear bins IS, IS, respectively,

and which are urged downwardly by suitably connected springs 26 to forcepencils 22 in the bins downwardly into the chutes i9, 20. Suitable guicleways 21 are provided in the sides of the bins l5, l6 for guide extensions 28 on said follower plates 24, 25.

The chutes I9, 20, are of the proper thickness to provide for pencils passing therethrou'gh single file. The chutes I9, 20 are constructed with front walls 28, 29, respectivel formed with transversely extending, forwardly bowed upper portions 30, 3|, forming pockets for transversely extending, horizontal agitating rollers 32,33, fast on operating shafts 34, 35, journalled adjacent their opposite ends in the side walls 23 with one end extending out of the casing and equipped with suitable operating knobs- 36, 31 for rotatin said rollers. The rollers 32, 33, are preferably provided with peripheral, resilient prongs 38, for wipingly engaging pencils 22 to facilitate feed of the same downwardly into the chutes i9, 20. Sight openings 39, 40, are provided in the walls 28, 29 for ascertaining whether or not the chutes I9, 20 are filled. At the bottoms thereof, the front walls, 28, 29, of chutes I9, 20, are outwardly rounded as at 4|, '42, for a purpose presently apparent. y

- A pair of ejector reels 43, 44, are provided in the bottoms of the chutes I9, 20, respectively, each between the rounded portion 4|, or 42, and the rear wall of the chute, said reels extending horizontally across'said chutes and comprising tubular cores 44' having thereon longitudinally spaced series of outstanding, peripheral fingers degree angle of movement, asingle pencil 22 is.

permitted to pass out of the chutes I9, 28. The cores 44' of the reels 43, 44, are rotatably mounted in the chutes i9, 28, by journalling the ends thereof in the side walls 23, said ends extending into the spaces between the side walls 3 and 23 for a purpose presently seen.

Coin controlled means for rotating the ejector reels 43, 44, is provided as follows.

Suitably secured in the casing I, in the space between the right hand side walls 3 and 23 is a pair of coin chutes 46, 41, related to the ejector reels 43, 44, of the front and rear bins I5, 16, respectively, and inclining downwardly and rearwardly from the front of the casing I and in intersection relation to the axes of the reels 43, 44, respectively, with their lower ends terminating above a coin receptacle 43 disposed. on the bottom 2 of the casing l in front of the doorway It! for access thereto through said doorway. A pair of horizontally disposed, reel operating, rock shafts 49, Eli, are suitably journalled at outer ends thereof in the right hand side wall 3 of easing l parallel with said reels 43, 44 and extend in front of the coin chutes 45, 47, respectively, with inner ends in front of and contiguous the cores 44 of the reels 43, 44. The outer ends of shafts d9, 51%, are equipped with operating cranks 52. The inner ends of the shafts 49, 5B, are

operatively connected to the right hand ends of the cores 44 of reels 43, 44, respectively, by oneway driving mechanism comprising in each instance the following. Fast on the inner end of the operatig shaft or 56, as the case may be, is an upstanding crank arm 53 having a pick-up slot. and. pinv connection 54, 55, with. one end of a link 55 pivoted at its other end, as at 51, to an upstanding ratchet arm 58 swingable about the right hand end of the core 44'. A spring pressed ratchet dog 59 on said arm 58 coacting with a ratchet wheel is fast on said end of the core 44 operatively connects the arm 58 to the core 44 so that under rocking of the shaft 49 in the proper direction to cause crank arm 52 to pick up the ratchet arm 58, the core 44' will be rotated in the proper direction.

Endwise sli'dable in the core 44' of each reel 43, 44, is a control rod Gil having its right hand end normally extending partway into the related coin chute 45, or 41, into intercepting relation to a coin passing down the chute, the arrangement being such that forcing of the coin past said end of the rod moves the latter toward the left hand side of the machine. The left hand end of the core 44' is equipped, in the space between the left hand side walls 3, with a radial flange forming a clutch disk 64 opposed to a complemental clutch disk 62 slidably mounted. for lateral movement toward and from disk El into and from clutching relation with respect to the latter. The mounting for the clutch disk 62 comprises a plurality of horizontal studs 63 end- Wise slidable in sockets $5 extending from the left hand side wall of casing I, and bores 64 in the disk 62 by'which the latter maybe detachably slid onto said studs. Coil springs 65 sleeved onto the studs 83 between the sockets it and disk 82 urge the latter into clutching relation. The studs 63 are spring pressed as at E3, outwardly of the sockets 65 to retain the same in the bores and movable inwardly of said sockets by means of hand grip pins 65 thereon slidable in slots 64 provided in said sockets, the arrangement being such that inward movement of said studs detaches the disk 62 therefrom. In the clutching relation of the disk 62 the control shaft 68 is yieldingly held in normal position. Under the described movement of the control shaft 68 to ward the left hand side of the machine the clutch disk 62 is moved thereby from clutching relation. A coin ejecting crank arm 66 is fixed on each operating shaft 49, 50, to extend into the related coin chute 48, 41 by way of slot 6'! in the latter and for operation by initial rocking of the shaft to shove a coin intercepted in the chute past the inner end of the control rod 68 and thereby operate said rod. The slot and pin connection 54, 55, provides for operation of said ejector finger 66 to force the coin past the control rod 60 before rotation of the related reels 43, 44, occurs. Any suitable means may be provided for preventing movement of the control rods 30 past normal position into the related coin chute, for instance, a stop collar 69' on the rod Gil for abutting the appropriate coin chute.

The clutch disks SI, 62, are constructed and arranged as follows. The disk ill, in each instance, is provided on the outer face thereof with a pair of diametrically opposed radial teeth 56. The complemental clutch disk 62 is provided on one face thereof with a pair of similarly arranged slots 61 adapted to receive said teeth and in the opposite face thereof with four such slots 68 arranged in degree angular relation and forming two pairs for receiving said teeth. 56.

With the disks 62 positioned on their mounting studs 63 and the single pair of slots 61 opposed to the teeth 66 of the disk 6 movement of the disks 62 out of clutching relation to disk El frees the latter for rotation of the reels 43, 44, through degrees, or a half revolution, to permit two pencils 22 to escape out of the chutes 28, 29, into the troughs 2| as will be clear. On the other hand, with the disks iii. reversed on the studs 63 with the two pairs of slots 68 opposed to the teeth 66, movement of the disks 62 out of clutching relation frees the disks Bl for rotation of reels 43, 44, through a 90 degree, or a quarter revolution, to permit a single pencil to escape out of the chutes 28, 29, into the troughs 2|.

The clutch disks 62 complemental to the clutch disk 6! of one ejector reel, for instance, 43, is designed to be arranged with the single pair of slots 61 opposed to the teeth 66 of the disk 61, whereas, the clutch disk 62 complemental to the disk SI of the other ejector reel 44 is designed to be arranged with the two pairs of slots 68 opposed to the teeth 66. By this arrangement, under deposit of a coin in one coin chute 46 and operation of the appropriate crank 5!, the machine will vend a single pencil 22 and under deposit of a similar coin in the other chute 4'! and operation of the appropriate crank 52 the machine will vend two pencils 22, all as will be clear from the foregoing. Obviously, by reversing the relative arrangement of the disks 62, the machine may be conditioned so that one pencil may be ejected by the reel formerly ejecting two pencils, and two pencils ejected by the reel previously ejecting a single pencil.

Referring now to the operation of the described invention, the kind of pencil to be obtained from the machine may be selected by sighting through the sight openings 39, or 40, of the chutes l9, N. A coin of the proper denomination may next be inserted in the proper coin chute 45, or 4?, as the case may be, related to the ejector reel 49, or 41), of the chutes l9 or 20 from which the selection has been made. The coin is intercepted in its passage through the chute by the control rod fill in the manner already explained. The appropriate crank 50, or 52, is next swung rearwardly of the machine, whereby the reel-operating rock shaft 49, or 50, operative thereby, is rocked in the proper direction to swing the crank arm 52 fixed on the shaft rearwardly of the machine, also the coin-ejecting crank arm 66 on said shaft into the coin chute. Under'initial rocking of the reeloperating shaft 4 9, or 50, the coin-ejecting crank arm forces the coin downwardly in the chute past the control rod 60, thereby moving said rod so that the clutch disk 62 is disengaged from the clutch disk 6|. Under further movement of said shaft 49, or 50, the pick-up connection 54, 55, becomes effective and the reel 43, or 44, asthe case may be, is operated in the manner previously described to release a pencil, or pencils, for gravitation out of the chute containing the sameand into the appropriate trough 2| within reach of the operator.

The, foregoing will, it is believed, suffice to impart a clear understanding of my invention since the operation and advantages of the same have been set forth in the foregoing together with the description of parts.

Manifestly the invention, as'described, is susceptible of modification without departing from the inventive concept, and right is herein reserved to such modifications as fall within the scope of the subjoined claims.

What I claim is:

1. Operating mechanism for a rotatable ejecting reel of a pencil vending machine said reel being operative in phases of a cycle of rotation thereof, said mechanism comprising coin controlled means for variably predetermining the number of phases through which said reel may be operated, said means including a normally ening device operative by the passage of a coin through said chute.

2. Operating mechanism for a rotatable ejecting reel of a pencil vending machine said reel being operative in phases of a cycle of rotation thereof, said mechanism comprising coin controlled means for variably predetermining the number of phases through which said reel may be operated, said means including a normally engaged clutch embodying a selector member manipulative to predetermine the number of phases selectively, a coin chute, a clutch disengaging device extending into said chute to intercept the passage of a coin therethrough and operative by passage of the coin past the same, and means to force said coin past said device and subsequently to operate said reel.

3. Operating mechanism for a rotary ejecting reel of a pencil vending machine, said reel being operative in phases. of a cycle of rotation thereof, said mechanism comprising coin controlled means for variably predetermining the number of phases through which said reel may be operated, said means including a normally engaged clutch embodying a selector member manipulative to selectively vary operation of the clutch, a coin chute, a

clutch disengaging device extending into said chute to intercept the passage of a cointherethrough and operative by passage of the coin past the same, and means to force said coin past said device and subsequently to operate said reel, said last means comprising a coin ejecting member, a reel operating member, and a pick-up connection between said members.

i ELWOOD H. WORSHAM. 

